To ask if nursery staff should be allowed to speak to other members of staff?

[Surething97]

I don't mean constantly standing around chatting, whilst the children get on with it. But I mean should they be able to chat to other members of staff whilst working about their own lifes, what they did at the weekend, their holiday plans, anything? As well as having interactions with children.

I think it’s more than acceptable for children to hear normal conversations and interactions. Surely that’s good for their development? As long as it’s not inappropriate what would be the problem?

If your nursery is like that you need to get out.

You mean like any other people in any other job? Well of course, providing that (a) they are doing their job and (b) not having inappropriate conversations.

Yes, nothing inappropriate and of course whilst observing and interacting with the children. But I ask this as we are not meant to do it. It's a new rule that has come in

I’d generally expect staff who were working with children to be talking to children, not talking over their heads.

So if it’s a chat that you include the children in fair game. If you’re chatting while they’re doing something else then no.

I would look for another job!

I’m not sure what you are asking. If you mean doing their job whilst having casual chat about their life outside work then absolutely they should as this is what’s fosters a happy work place. If it’s talking to the exclusion of interaction with the children in their care then no. What is the context?

It would be totally crazy if a nursery nurse was not allowed to chat with other colleagues! How do you stay sane on a 10 hour shift if you can’t even discuss what you did at the weekend?

I’d have no issue whatsoever with staff chatting to each other while in charge of my child.

Can you imagine how soul destroying and deathly boring that would be. A mixture should be fine.

This sounds like the sort of overly-broad rule that gets put in place as a reaction to some workers not being able to use good judgement about what's appropriate when and keep chatting from getting in the way of doing their jobs well. It's not good management, but I'm guessing there's also a backstory and probably some nuance we're missing.

I worked in a nursery years ago that banned staff chatting!

When we were out in the garden the head teacher from the school next door would spy on us and call the nursery manager if she saw staff grouped together 😂I laugh now but it was nuts.

I think 10mins of every hour is a rough guide, any more and I’d question how quality your interactions are with the children. Of course at times they need to play independently and you need a brain break/adult company, but high quality childcare does involve significant interactions including sitting and watching making positive noises/non verbal approval and modelling active listening and focus. I do find a lot of early years staff over resource their areas eg constantly changing and laminating as an excuse not to interact with the kids. I wouldn’t have the policy but if I looked in and constantly saw staff chatting and kids being ignored I wouldn’t be impressed.
for context I have worked in EYFS with a preschool attached for 2 years and now teach year 1/2.

We rejected a nursery because the baby room was practically silent when we looked round. No music, no chit chat from the adults…just the odd baby noise. I’d much rather my child heard fluent language and sentence use than just baby chat on a loop. I was worried about her language development and also staff retention because it felt so utterly miserable.

For older children, I’d expect the main focus to be on them but the odd chat from staff is fine. Assuming all language is appropriate, of course. I would guess if a new rule has been brought in then either a colleague is taking the piss a bit, and/or someone has complained.

I get this and of course I want my children’s nursery staff to be interacting with her and not ignoring her… but, one of the big things I’m working on with my 4 year old is not constantly interrupting her father and I when we are talking and reminding her we take turns to talk and she needs to wait her turn. So yeah I would be happy for the staff to have normal conversation between themselves in my child’s presence.

It’s perfectly possible to have a great of catch up and loosely involve the children in it. Talking over their heads is just plain rude.

I'm a teacher and I chat to colleagues occasionally in passing during the school day. Not that often obviously as usually I am alone in the classroom. But between lessons while welcoming the children in we might exchange some brief chat "How was your weekend?" "Did your daughter get that job?" kind of thing. Nothing that deep. And if there is another adult working with me, a TA say, we might exchange brief social chat at lesson handover time, points like that. I don't think the children suffer..... In fact I'd have the same level of chat with students at certain points in the day- say if a couple of kids are early to lesson, or standing near you while on break duty -- you pass the time of day.

I am perhaps lucky because my workplace recognises the value of friendly informal interaction (whether staff to staff, staff to student or student to student) and actively promotes it.

I would imagine it's the same in nursery work. Obviously you don't wantti be getting involved in long drawn out discussions while working, but a brief bit of polite chat if two adults happen to be in the same space at the same time is perfectly healthy and normal - just as you might exchange similar chat with the children if they are verbal. It's polite human interaction, innit? I would be pleased staff were modelling it to my children.

In fact, I am no expert but I imagine children expand their vocabulary and knowledge of the world by overhearing adult conversation? Isn't that where the (not necessarily true always) stereotype of only children being more precocious comes from?

'In fact, I am no expert but I imagine children expand their vocabulary and knowledge of the world by overhearing adult conversation? Isn't that where the (not necessarily true always) stereotype of only children being more precocious comes from'
I agree with this. It's vital that children are modelled these types of normal conversations, so that they can learn social skills. Sadly many children don't hear much of it at home, and some are on screens constantly so don't hear this type of thing.
When I was a teacher we were banned from chatting as well.

Of bloody course! I temped as bank staff in a nursery, so I knew no one, therefore I wasn’t involved in any chat or conversation I was just a body in the room. OBVIOUSLY I interacted with the children but a) they were pre school age and didn’t need or want me talking to them constantly
b) they didn’t know me
c) they preferred to interact with their peers and go to a known member of staff if they needed anything

LONGEST ten hour shifts, especially as the bank staff get shafted with the early lunch break no one wants- ie start at 8, lunch break at 11- you’ve then got a stretch of 12-6.

If you’ve never done it you don’t realise how monotonous it is without even the briefest of social interaction with another adult. Especially if you’re not senior staff and can’t lead or plan an activity or anything. And then in the baby room you’re often just sat staring at a wall while they all nap 😩

I only did it while lining up my next nanny job but it was really hard going. I used to keep a packet of fruit pastilles in my pocket and let myself have one every half an hour as a treat, as if I was in prison 🤣

So I definitely disagree that staff shouldn’t be able to have a bit of chit chat to each other while working!

That was my experience of temping in the baby room too, and it just felt sad! They learn so much from just hearing the world around them, at the very least pop some bloody nursery rhymes on.

I worked in nurseries for years and one of them was like this. Staff were not allowed to talk about ANYTHING not relating to the children or nursery. It was utterly miserable. Conversation is part of human nature and it's how people build stronger bonds, therefore making the room a much happier place to be in 10 hours a day. I remember one colleague and I talking about something mundane like what we were making for dinner that night. The manager heard,us as it was a hot day and the door was open, and stormed in like were drowning kittens in front of the children. Fucking ridiculous. As long as you're not spending all day chatting about anything inappropriate or ignoring the children, of course some idle chitchat should be fine and expected

That’s why I said a mixture.

It's tricky as they probably brought in the rule as groups of staff were standing about chatting and not interacting with the children.

In an ideal world there would be a balance but sometimes it's easier to have a rule on things so people don't take the piss.

I am a teacher and don't get to speak to my colleagues other than at my break times and my work is anything but boring!

I presume this rule has been introduced as some staff were taking the piss and not interacting enough with children?

I'm a teacher, so a different scenario but I wouldn't expect teachers or TAs to chat about their weekend to each other during lesson times other than in a quick greeting (morning-lovely to see you, hope you had a lovely Easter etc).

More chatting about weekends would happen during break times, lunchtimes or before/after school.

Yes - I agree with @howshouldibehave . For the management to have brought in this rule there must have been quite a bit of chit chat to the detriment of the work being undertaken/child centred activity.